International visitors to Vietnam in 8 months nearly reach year’s target

International tourists from Europe visit and shop at Ben Thanh Market, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. (Photo: VNA)

The number of domestic tourists in August 2023 was estimated at 9.5 million, a decrease compared to the previous month, of which about 6.3 million guests had accommodations. In the past 8 months, the number of domestic tourists reached 86 million.

Revenue from accommodation and food services in the past 8 months was estimated at VND436.3 trillion. Tourism revenue was estimated at VND22.4 trillion, up 47% over the same period last year. The reason was the high demand for domestic tourism during the peak season, while localities have actively implemented many activities to stimulate tourism demand after a long time of being affected by the COVID-19 epidemic.

Currently, the entire tourism industry is making efforts to accelerate the recovery and the effective and sustainable development of tourism, contributing to turning tourism into a spearhead economic sector.

Under the new regulations, the duration of electronic visas (e-visas) for tourists will be increased from 30 to 90 days. After being granted an e-visa, in 90 days tourists can also enter and exit an unlimited number of times, without having to go through new visa procedures. In addition, citizens of countries that are unilaterally exempted from visas by Vietnam are granted temporary residence for 45 days (previous regulation is 15 days) and are considered for visa issuance and temporary residence extension according to regulations.

The Vietnam National Authority of Tourism under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, as well as tourism experts assessed that these positive changes will promote Vietnam's tourism to develop more and more strongly. The number of international visitors to Vietnam will increase, creating attractive business opportunities for investors./.